Billionaire investor Tim Draper can the reception is more challenging than anticipated when proposing Sri Lanka, a bankrupt nation, for Bitcoin.
Draper was in Sri Lanka on Tuesday, talking to local entrepreneurs about cryptocurrency adoption. The businessman met President Ranil Wickremesinghe that day on the matter.
Draper went to the country’s central bank to present a similar tone. However, Governor Nandalal Weerasinghe, who is still trying to solve the country’s financial challenges, did not accept the idea. The central bank governor responded that the adoption of Bitcoin in Sri Lanka will not be a 100% reality.
Weerasinghe said introducing Bitcoin will worsen the crisis; therefore, he still decided to take that route. The government official said that other technologies can be used effectively in financial services to promote social inclusion and quickly disburse funds to those in need.
Financial Crisis Drives Nation To Bitcoin
Draper described Sri Lanka as a corrupt country during the meeting and offered cryptocurrency as a solution. He said that Sri Lanka, a country known for its mineral resources, can overcome corruption by keeping perfect records through the adoption of Bitcoin.
Last year, Sri Lanka faced the worst economic crisis in its history, which sent prices soaring and led to food and fuel shortages across the country. As a result, the difficulty was stirred protest which forced President Gotabaya Rajapaksa to flee the country and then announced his resignation.
Sri Lanka is now in talk with a group of private creditors from Japan, China, and India to restructure debt in line with the IMF plan. The country restructured debt payments of about $51 billion from $28 billion, which must be paid off by 2027.
According to Draper, Sri Lanka can overcome its financial crisis through the adoption of Bitcoin. Billionaire investors see cryptocurrency as a good store, not subject to government or central bank policy changes.
At the meeting, Draper mentioned El Salvador. The nation adopted Bitcoin as legal tender after its government accepted the crypto to promote financial inclusion and economic development.
Countries like Zimbabwe, Turkey, and Venezuela also witnessed it the ongoing financial crisis. They are suffering from hyperinflation, and as a result, their citizens are increasingly turning to cryptocurrency as a means of exchange and store of value.
According to Draper, Bitcoin is one of the important tools for mankind to overcome the financial crisis. He believes that investors should continue to look for opportunities by investing directly in Bitcoin and its underlying technology (Blockchain).
Bitcoin Price Action
Today, Bitcoin is trading at $23,633 with a trading volume of $30.7 billion. Bitcoin has fallen by 0.93% in the last 24 hours. The price of the cryptocurrency increased by 3.22% in the previous seven days.
Bitcoin’s value plummeted in November following the collapse of the FTX exchange, a fall that saw the cryptocurrency trade below $17,000 for several weeks. Cryptocurrencies have so far recovered their value from the November crash, driven by institutional adoption.
Despite a brief sustained uptick, the cryptocurrency has lost more than 70% of its value since peaking above $69,000 recorded in November 2021. Tim Draper is still bullish, he believe the flagship cryptocurrency will reach $250,000 this year.
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